*With Po, ten minutes before his discussion with Kiro*
"H-hi! W-what are you d-d-doing here?" The Dragon Warrior heard a nervous voice say across from his cell.
Po looked up and saw a female cricket in a small metal cage across from him. The small prison cell was sitting on top of a small wooden table.
"Hey. I got captured by the dragon up there." Po replied, nodding to the steps leading up to the throne room. "He made my friends drink some formula and now they've turned against me. I don't know if I'll ever be able to get them back to the way that they were."
"I got captured, too! I was just passing through these mountains on my way to see my friend in a city not far from here, when these crocodiles came out of nowhere, grabbed me, and threw me down here!" The bug explained.
The croc bandits.
"Hi, I'm Po. What's your name?"
"Po, huh? My name is Hira. It must be difficult to share the same name with the legendary Dragon Warrior."
Po looked down at the floor and they sat in silence for a couple of minutes. "Yeah, it is pretty tough."
"No talking to the other prisoner!" Kiro snapped.
Po jumped a little, not realizing that the white tiger had been standing there. "What're you gonna do to stop me?"
"Quiet panda, I'm just messing with ya." Kiro said as he snuck over to Po's cell. "I've been able to hold off the dark part of me that the potion had released for now, but I'm looking for a cure."
Po's eyes widened and hope started to grow inside of him. "You can do that? So that means that the others can do that too?"
"I assume so." Kiro replied, shrugging his shoulders.
"Cool! Wait, how do I know that you're not tricking me?" Po whispered.
"Dude, if you challenged the darker part of me a few minutes ago, you would've been toast." Came the reply.
"Oh, carry on!" Po said.
Kiro got up and walked over to a book lying on the potion table.
This is GREAT! If Kiro can find a cure, then that means that I can bring Ti and the others back! We still have a chance!
"The Big Book of Potions: Every Bad Potion and How to Use It. Cures Inside." Po heard the tiger read.
*With Kiro, a few days later*
The Five had just returned from their journey with tons of items for the massive amounts of Qu-Za potion that had to be made. For one potion, one would need to get: five bamboo leaves, eight drops of derived juice from a peach, one jar of ginger, and three drops of iodine.
"Excellent!" Feng boomed. "We will start the preparations of the Qu-Za in the morning! For now, get some rest, warriors. You've had a long journey!"
The Five nodded and walked to their separate chambers.
"Master Feng, if I may, I would like to bring each of them a drink for their excellent work and contribution to our cause." Kiro commented, looking up at the dragon.
"An excellent idea! Without them, this would've taken much longer than needed. Wish granted! You're dismissed!" The grandmaster boomed.
"Thank you, sir."
Kiro walked off and quietly went down into the dungeon and mixed together five more cures on the potion table.
"Now?" Po asked, practically sticking his head through the bars.
"Now's the time, Dragon Warrior. I'll slip these into each of their drinks, and they will be cured of the potion!" Kiro said, over his shoulder.
"Sweet! I can't wait to see Ti again!" Po said excitedly.
Kiro shoved the vials of liquid into his pockets and walked up the stairs and into the kitchen. He had never been in this part of the cavern before, so it took him a little while to find everything he needed to make the drinks. He whipped up some fresh cider and poured the yellow liquid in each one.
"What is that you're making?" The Emperor hissed as he slithered in.
"Some fresh cider for our warriors who had just come back from their journey, Your Highness." Kiro replied.
"Ah. I see. And, what was that you poured into the drinks?"
Uh oh. Bad. Bad situation.
"Just an old family recipe, sir. I learned it from my mother. It adds a certain sweet yet mildly sour kick to it. I think that they'll like it." Kiro lied.
"Sounds wonderful. I don't like any sour in my drinks, though. So when you're done bringing the Five their beverages, I would like just a plain cup of cider." The serpent said.
"Of course, Your Highness." Kio nodded.
The snake slithered out of the room, and Kiro quietly blew out a sigh of relief.
Man, that was close. I hate lying, but I'm just so good at it. Guess that's one tool that's not always bad to have.
Kiro exited the kitchen and entered Tigress' room first.
"Greetings, Kiro. What brings you here?" Tigress asked.
She was resting on her bed when the white tiger walked in. Her mattress was queen sized and the covers were made from the softest, finest material in all of China. Kiro was a little surprised that Feng had obtained such an item.
"I just wanted to bring you a drink! The grandmaster and I are very pleased with your work. I'm also glad that you've seen our side of things." Kiro replied, smiling evilly.
"That's very kind of you," Tigress said, taking the cup, "However I feel that you're here for something else."
"Em, pardon?" Kiro said, confused.
Tigress took a big drink of out of her wooden cup and got up and walked over to Kiro.
"I think that you're here to ask me something." Tigress purred.
"I…am?" Kiro sputtered.
I don't like where this is going. Po is gonna be mad if this goes where I think it's going…
Tigress lengthened her claw on her index finger and put in on Kiro's chin. "Yes… I think you're here because you want to date me."
AAAAHHHH! THIS IS GOING WHERE I THINK IT'S GOING! Don't blow your cover. I don't like how this is gonna go, but if I have to in order to keep Po and I safe, I will…
"Y-yep. T-t-that's the reason. You're not gonna kill me, are you?" Kiro lied, stuttering nervously.
Tigress smiled and brought her claw down. "No, I'm not. I'm going to accept your offer. I've always had a bit of a crush on you. I could never get over your handsome face, fighting style, and your gift for being reckless…"
Kiro gulped. So now I'm dating two girls at once! AAAAHHHH! I like Song, though! I can't wait for this potion to kick in! Bring back the Ti that I know!
"Well, ya know…" Tigress whispered, leaning up to his ear. "…I can be reckless, too."
"I wouldn't doubt it…" Kiro murmured.
Tigress pulled away and started to lean in to kiss Kiro on the lips, and just when she was about to, she blinked twice and a tremor went through her body.
Tigress was back.
She looked at the sweating Kiro and realized what she was about to do and stumbled back, embarrassed.
"Not… a… word." She threatened.
Kiro nodded his head vigorously, then slumped to the floor in exhaustion.
Oh, that was close. That situation was NOT gentle with my little heart.
"You brought me back. How?" Tigress asked.
Kiro explained the cure, how he slipped it into her drink, and how Po was locked in the dungeon.
"You can't rescue him yet. I have to get the others to drink the cure also. For now, I need you to act as though you're still under their control." Kiro finished.
Tigress nodded her head.
Kiro stood up and picked up the other drinks and walked over to the door.
"Ya know, Ti, I never knew that you felt that way about me before." Kiro said, smiling.
Tigress slammed her fist into his shoulder, making the white tiger wince in pain.
"Like I said, not a word." She said, baring her teeth.
"Yep! You got it! Bye!" Kiro said, hurrying out of her room.
He went to the others rooms after that, having a similar encounter with Viper that he had with Tigress. Except with Viper, she coiled around him and actually DID kiss him, but then snapped back to her old self and made almost the same threat that Tigress made.
Once Kiro had made his rounds and delivered the cider to the Emperor, he went down into the prison and met with Po.
"Hey, buddy! How did it go?" Po asked excitedly.
"The girls are gonna have a few issues with me for a little bit, but other than that, everyone is back to normal." Kiro reported.
"What kind of iss…ooooohhhhh!" Po gawked as he saw lipstick on Kiro's mouth and cheek. "Did Tigr—"
"No, panda, she didn't." Kiro cut him off. "She almost did, but the potion kicked in before she could. Viper however…"
"Dude! Hahahahaha!" Po cackled.
"I'm going back upstairs." Kiro snarled, rolling his eyes.
He walked back to the throne room, but was called over by Feng.
"I see that our guests enjoyed their drinks! Especially the women, I would say!" The dragon said before roaring in laughter.
Kiro smiled and chuckled along with his enemy.
Man I hate you...
Little did he know that Song was peering out of her room, hearing the dragon's remark.
"That little cheating jerk…"
Kiro looked over and saw Song with a look of malice painted on her face before shutting the door.
Aw, fudge… He thought.
*With the Emperor*
You think that you could keep your little secret from me? I know that you've turned, you little cretin. I know that you've turned the Five back to their original selves. You're lucky that I need them for my plan. Once they've taken down the dragon, I WILL BE THE RULER OF CHINA'S CRIMINALS! The serpent thought with a devilish grin on his face.
There it is! Sorry for not much fighting in this chapter, but it will be coming soon! I promise! Leave your review of the chapter and I'll be writing more very soon. More to come…